Tire compress and control



June 12, 1951 I D. MQDONAL.D 2,556,593-

TIRE coMPREss AND CONTROL v Filed May 5, 1948 2 sheets-,sheet 2 M410MINI/Hmm.

Patented June 12, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TIRE Coll/[PRESS ANDCONTROL Donald McDonald, Dayton, Ohio Application May 5, 1948, SerialNo. 25,182

Claims. (CL 18-2) This invention relates to a tire compress and controland more particularly to a method and apparatus for use in compressingtire casings preparatory to and during the process of removing pressurebags therefrom after the vulcanization of the casings.

In the art of manufacturing tires, ther tirev is rst built of rawrubberized cords and raw rubber which must be formed into tireY shape.In forming theY tires, a pressure bag is inserted into thecrudely'formed tireand the tire with the enclosed bag isr then insertedin a mold in which the tire is subjected to vulcanizing heatv andsimultaneously a pressure medium is introduced into the bag, expandingthe same in such a manner as to stretch the cordsv in the tire and forcethe tire against the walls, of the molding whereby the rubberized cordswill be cured under tension and the surface. of the tread and sides ofthe tire will be molded to the desired shape.

The present invention has for its purpose the provision of a procedureand means` for carrying out that procedure, whereby the removal of thepressure bags from the tires after the vulcanization may be quickly andeffectively accomplished Without danger of injury to the tires.

, One objectl of this invention is to provide a compress which may beused for tires of various sizes` without danger of injury to the tires.

Another object of this invention is to provide an automatic control fora tire compress which eliminates the need. for manually regulating theextent of movement of the compress jaws.

Another object of this invention is to provide a. control arrangementwhich may be attached to existing compresses without the need for anyIYISJJ'OI' alteration in the compress construction.

Sltill another object of this invention is to provide a controlfor acompress which is inexpensive to manufacture and dependable in use.

' Still another object of this invention is tov provide a compresscontrol which may be used for controlling either a pneumaticallyoperated compressl or an electrically operated compress.

Other objects and advantages reside in the construction of parts',A thecombination thereof and the mode' of operation, as will become moreapparent from the following description.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view showing somewhatdiagrammatically a prefer-red embodiment of my invention;

Figure' 2 is an elevational view with parts broken away; and' Figure 3-isA a vertical sectional view showing an electrically opera-ted compressprovided'- with my improved control.

Referring now to the drawings wherein preferred embodiments of myinvention have been shown, reference numeral I0 represents a mainsupporting plate or frame which is preferably held in a verticalposition or at a slight angle to the vertical position. on a support orfloor I I. A plurality of radially movable tire engaging jaws I3 areslidably supported on a corresponding number of radially arranged guidesI2 which are spaced from the plate I0 by means o f spacers I4 and I6.The number of jaws used may be varied somewhat without departing fromthe spirit of my invention, and in. order to simplify the disclosure, Ihave shown only four jaws, whereas in actual practice one would use sixor more jaws, depending partly upon the size of the tires to be heldthereby. lThe spacers I 6 constitute bearing blocks arranged at theinner ends of the guides I2. Each of the pressure elements or jaws I3 isnormally urged radially outwardly by a spring I8 connected at one end toone of the elements I4 and at the other end to a projection I9 on thejaws I 3'.

For simultaneously urging the jaws I3 against the action of springs I8',each jaw has its own operating chain 20 connected thereto, trained overa sprocket 2| journalled in the bearing block I6 and connected to areciprocating cross-head 22. The chains pass through an aperture 23formed in the center of the plate IIJ at a point to the rear of thestationary guard plate I0a. Reoiprocation of the cross-head 22 may beeffected by any suitable means such as4 pneumatic power, electric power,or the like.

In Figures 1 andv 2 of the' drawings, Iy have shown a pneumaticarrangement comprising a connecting rod 24. slidably mounted in abracket 25' secured to the rear of the plate I0 and operable by a piston26 in a cylinder 2'I secured to bracket 25 as shown. The operation ofthe compress jaws I3 isA controlled by the four-way valve 34 which maybe either manually or automatically controlled, so as to supplycompressed air or some other operating uid to either endV of thecylinder 21, so as to causeY the desired reciprocation of the piston 26.The operating uid is supplied through the line 32 to the control valve34 which selectively directs the fluidy either into the line 3B whichleads to the valve 30 and the right side of the piston 26' or into theline 44- vwhich leads directly to the left si'd'e of the piston 26. Acheck valve 38 is arranged in a b y-pass line 4i! and permits" the flowof ilu-id iin the one direction only', as will be explained more fullyhereinafter. When ther valve 34 is arranged in, the full line position,theffluidl under pressure serves to move the piston 26 to the left, asviewed in the drawing, so as to cause the tire engaging jaws to moveinto engagement with the outer periphery of the tire casing, so as toexert sufficient pressure on the tire casing to facilitate the removalof the pressure bag 42 from the tire casing 4| at which time the valve30 will be automatically closed in a manner to be explained hereinafter.It will be noted that .the check valve 38 prevents the ow of` air to thecylinder 21 when the valve 30 is closed.

As the piston 26 moves to the left during the initial compress closingoperation, the fluid disposed in the left end of the cylinder 21 isffree'to escape through the line 44 and the -fluidoutlet 46. When usingcompressed air, the outletv 46A merely relieves the air to theatmsphee,"where as when using liquid for operating the piston .2 6,.

the outlet 46 would lead to the main liquid supply reservoir not shown.

Excessive pressure on'the tire casingvs, especially when the tirecasings are still hot, may lcause serious injury to the tire casings andthe tirebead. In order to automatically regulate the extent of movementof the jaws I3 when moving into engagement with a tire casing, I haveprovided a novel arrangement which eliminates the need for manuallysetting the apparatus for dif ferent tire sizes and which eliminates thedanger of the jaws from exerting too great a pressure on the tirecasings. As best shown in Figure l of the drawings, the apparatus forcontrolling the extent of movement of the jaws comprises a feeler in theform of. a bell crank lever 50 which is pivotally supported on a pin 52carried between a pair of supporting plates 54 which are attached to thetop jaw I3 so as to move with the jaw. The one end of the bell cranklever 50 is adapted to normally extend downwardly below the bottomsurface of the upper jaw I3, so as to engage the tire when the jaw I3moves downwardly to engage-the top of the tire.

The upper end of the bell crank lever 50 pivotally supports a pawl 56which is adapted to cooperate with the teeth on a reciprocating rack 58slidably supported in a stationary guide 80 xed to the upper end of theguide I2, as indicated in the drawing. Figure l shows the pawl 56 inengagement with the rack 58 as a result of the jaw I3 and the lower endof the bell crank lever 50 having moved into contact with the tirecasing, whereas Figure 3 shows the pawl 58 out of engagement with therack 58. After the pawl 56 moves into engagement with the teeth on therack 58, further downward movement of the jaw I3 moves the rack 58downwardly, so as to actuate the valve 30 to the closed position,thereby stopping further closing movement of the compress jaw I3. Thespring 62 biases the rack 58 upwardly.

A spring 60, having one end secured to the supporting plates 54, exertsa pull on the pawl 55 and thereby tends to hold the pawl out ofengagement with the teeth on the rack and also tends to rotate the bellcrank 50 about the pivot 52, so as to move the lower end of the bellcrank downwardly beyond the bottom surface of the jaw I3. However, afterthe jaws I3 have moved radially inwardly far enough so that apredetermined amount .of pressure has been applied ,to the outerperiphery of the tire, the lower end oi' the bell crank or feeler 50will have moved upwardly and will have moved the pawl 56 into engagementwith the teeth on the rack 58. Since the supporting plates 54 on whichthe bell crank 50 and pawl 56 are supported move with the jaw I3, therack 58 will move with the jaw I3 after the pawl 56 moves intoengagement with the teeth 0n the rack 58.

The spring 60 is strong enough to cause reciprocation of the rack 58under normal conditions but is not strong enough to hold the pawl 56 indriving engagement with the teeth on the rack in the event that the rackor valve mechanism operated thereby oiers excessive resistance to-movement. For purposes of illustrating my invention, I have shown thelower end of the bell 'i vcrank 50 passing through an aperture in thejaw .|3, whereas the bell crank 50 could be arranged to extend along oneside of the jaw I3.

. The rack 58 is provided with an arm 10 which .maybe verticallyadjusted on the upper end o1' the rack 58 and which is adapted to engagethe operator 12 of the valve 30.v A s pring 4 normally biases the valveoperator 'I2 into the valve opening position,` so that as the arm I0moves upwardly, the valve 30 automatically returns to the open position,the valve operator comingA to rest against the stop 16.

By adjusting the arm I0 in a vertical direction relative to the rack 58,it is possible to adjust the amount of travel of the jaws after the jawsengage the tire. Normally the arm is adjusted so thatl the jaws willmove approximately four to six inches beyond the initial point ofcontact between the jaw and the tire. Any further movement of the jawsis unnecessary for holding the tire and',

. in fact, `may result in serious damage to the tire.

The distance traveled by the jaws I3 after engage-l ment with the tiremay be varied without departfing from the spirit of my invention. .l

When it is desired to release the tire casing from the compress, thevalve 34 is moved into the dotted line position, so as to connect theoutlet side of the check valve 38 to the exhaust fluid outlet 46 andintroduce fluid from 32 into the left end of the cylinder 21 through theline 44.

In Figure 3 of the drawings, I have shown an arrangement in which anelectric motor 94 is used for reciprocating the lcross-head 22 of adevice corresponding in other respects to the device describedhereinabove. Like reference numerals have been used to designate likeparts in all gures of the drawings, and unless otherwise indicated, theparts are similar in construction and operation. In the modificationshown in Figure 3, a switch has replaced the valve 30 and is adapted tobe operated in the same manner and by the same kind of mechanism used tooperate the valve 30. The electric motor 94 is provided with a threadeddrive shaft 96 for operating the cross-head 92. The. operation of themotor 94 is controlled by a reversing switch 98 which is arranged in thecircuit as shown. It is obvious that the electric circuit may be varieddepending upon the particular type of motor and motor controls used. Forpurposes of illustrating the invention, I have shown a conventionalmotor having three leads IIlI, |02 and |03. The lead |03 has been showndirectly connected to the power line |04 at all times, whereas the lead|02 is connected to the power line |05 only when the switch 98 is in itsfull line position and the switch 90 is also closed. When current issupplied to the motor through the leads |02 and |03, the motor willoperate in the one direction, whereas when current is supplied to themotor through the leads |0| and |03, such as when the switch 98 is inits dotted line position and the limit switch 901s closed, the motorywin be operated ini trie opposite direction.l Whenth control switch 98moved to its upper position, `it energizes the motor 94 through the line92 and switch 90 in a direction to cause the jaws |13 to move inwardly.When the jaws I3 have moved inwar'dly'the correct amount, the switchil!)v will `be actuated to the open circuit position so as to stop themotor.. order to reverse the movement of` the.jaws, -l3 so as to releasethe tire, the swit'eh 9'8/ is moved into its dottdline position so astd- 'energize the motor iln-the reverse direction througl'iy the line|00. A limit switch 99V has been provided in the line "|"00ffor openingthe circuit to the motor when the, y

jaws have moved to their outer limits, at which time the cross-headl 22moves into engagement with the switch 99 so as to open the circuit tothe motor and stop the same.

Although the preferred embodiment of the device has been described, itwill be understood that within the purview of this invention variouschanges may be made in the form, details, proportion and arrangement ofparts, the combination thereof and mode of operation, which generallystated consist in a device capable of carrying out the objects setforth, as disclosed and dened in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

l. An attachment for a compress having a movable jaw comprising incombination, a support adapted to be attached to the movable jaw ofvsaid compress, a lever pivotally mounted on said support, said leverhaving a portion arranged to be engaged by the article to be compressed,a pawl supported on said lever and adapted to be actuated by movement ofsaid lever, a complementary ratchetl member, means for slidably supportingthe ratchet member adjacent said pawl so as to be operatedthereby, and means operated by said ratchet member for controlling theoperation of saidjaw.

2. In combination with a tire compress having a stationary support and amovable jaw slidably mounted on said support, a frame member attached tosaid jaw, a bell crank lever, means for i pivotally supporting said bellcrank lever on said frame member Awith the one end of the bell cranklever arranged to engage the tire upon movement of the jaw toward thetire engaging position, a

pawl, means for supporting said pawl on the other bell crank lever intoengagement with the tire, l

and means operated by said ratchet for controlling the operation of saidjaw.

3. In combination with a tire compress having a stationary support and amovable jaw slidably mounted on said support, a frame memberv attachedto said jaw, a bell crank lever, means for pivotally supporting saidbell crank lever on said frame member with the one end of the ball cranklever larranged to engage the tire upon movement of the jaw toward thetire engaging position, a pawl, means for pivotally supporting said pawladjacent the other end of said bell crank lever, a ratchet, means forslidably supporting said ratchet, means for biasing said pawl out ofengagement with said ratchet and for biasing said bell crank lever intoengagement with the tire, and means operated by said ratchet forcontrolling the operation of said jaw, said last named means comprisingan arm adjustably supported on said ratchet.

6. 4. a device for use in compressing tire` cas` ings during the process0f reir'llf'ilfigy rlnl/r prs-- sure bags from the tire casings, aframe, a plurality o'jaw elements', means for supporting said jawelements' onsaid frame soas to surround and embrace a tire'c'asing',means for relatively moving' the jaw elementsV against the outerperiphery or' the 'Y casing to spread" the casing beads apart abouttheir entire ex'tentpandA means responsive to the sizev of saidtirecasingfor automatically limitingthe movement of the jaw elementsafter coming in contact with the outer periphery of the tire Casing. l

"5. In an attachment `for a tire compress for regulatingl thev degree ofclosing of the movable compress jaws so as to compensate for differencesin tire sizes, a lever, means for pivotally supporting said lever on oneof said movable jaws, and

l.means operated in response to pivotal movement of said lever resultingfrom contact with a tire for limiting the closing movement of saidmovable jaws.

6. In an attachment for a multiple jaw tire compress for regulating thedegree of movement of the compress jaws so as to compensate fordifferences in tire sizes, a feeler, means for supporting said feelerfor movement in synchronism with one of said jaws so as to engage thetire to be held by said compress, and means operated by said feeler forstopping the movement of said jaw a predetermined interval after thefeeler first contacts the tire.

, 7. In a tire compress, a support, a pair of jaws mounted for relativemovement on said support, means for producing relative movement of saidjaws so as to cause said jaws to move into engagement with the tire ,tobe gripped thereby, and means for automatically limiting the degree ofmovement of said jaws after coming in contact with said tire, said lastnamed means being responsive to the tire-size -whereby the extent ofclosing of said jaws is determined by the tire size.

8. An attachmentfor a tire compress or the like for regulating thedegree of closing of the movable compress soV asto compensate fordifferences in tire sizes comprising in combination, a support adaptedto be attached to one of the movable jaws of the compress, a leverpivotally mounted on said support, a pawl supported on said lever andadapted to be actuated by movement of said lever, a ratchet member,means for slidably supporting the ratchet member adjacent said pawl Soas to be operated thereby, and means operated by movement of saidratchet member for controlling the operation of said jaws. v

9. In .a tire compress, a frame, a plurality of jaw elements, means forslidably supporting said jaw elements on said frame, a fluid operatedpiston for actuating said jaw elements, a, control for said piston,means for regulating the degree of closing of said movable jaw elementsso as to compensate for differences in tire sizes including positionresponsive mechanism carried adjacent the face of one of said jawelements, and means operated in response to a predetermined relativeposition of a tire and said mechanism for operating 4said control, saidlast named means being so constructed and arranged as to allow apredetermined movement of said jaw elements after engagement with atire, `said control comprising a valve for regulating the flow of fluidto said piston.

10. In a tire compress, a frame, a plurality of` jaw elements, meansvfor slidably supporting said jaw elements on said frame, meansincludingan electric'motor for operating said jaw elements into and outof engagement with the outer periphery of tires to be compressed, acontrol for said motor comprising a switch arranged in the motorcircuit, means for regulating the degree of `closing of said jawelements so as to compensate for differences in tire sizes lincludingposition responsive mechanism carried byone of said jaw elements, andmeans operated in response to a predetermined relative position of atire disposed between said jaw elements and said mechanism for operatingsaid switch, said last named means -being so constructed and arranged asto allow a predetermined movement of said jaw elements in the tirecompressing direction after said position responsive mechanism engagesthe tire' being compressed before operating said switch.

DONALD MCDONALD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in le of thislmteltlt:`

UNITED STATES PATENTS the

